Indexing mechanism



Jan,"20, 1931. c. 1. WR'EN INDEXING MECHANISM Filed April 12, 1928 mreflfo/ Cm/ We 6- Patentedlan. 20, 19 31" warren TA E-s} CARL ,IVA'R wR -mor crc ino, innrivorslnssrenon To wnsmnn minocrarccomrnivn,"

rnconronn'rnn, ENEWYQRK, N. Y,.,- A oonronntrrouorunw103K V v i IunEXrNG M cnAnIsM i Ap lication filed April t,

Thisinvention =1clates to indexing inechanism and more particularly to indexing mechanism used in automatic screw machines having multplle tool-holding devlces.

In the manufacture ofmetal parts in ma-i three'sets of two tools each mounted on the I which allows a tool-holding turret designed to l turret.

The first alternative would necessitate considerable lost time and considerable wear" upon the machines, since the same time and wear would be necessary for the indexing operations of the turret fora part up'onlwhich two operations are'performed as would'be required for a part upon which six operations are performed, The second alternative wouldnecessitate three sets of tools and would require a very accurate adjustment and almost constant'observation of the tools in order to produce a uniform product.

The primary object of this invention" is to" adapt a material working apparatus includ 'ing a multiple tool holder so that a number of tools-less than the total may be'used with-a minimum loss of time and motion. I

' In accordance with one embodiment of'this' invention, as applied to a six tool automatic screw machine, there is provided. apparatus hold sixtools to rotate one-sixthofa revolution inthe usual direction against the action of a spring and then to be returned by'the actionof the spring acorrespondingdistance. Thus, a sixtool machine maybe adapted so that onlytwo tools areemployedwithlno more loss of timeor motion than is required in the usual operation of the machine when six tools are employed.

Other objects and advantages: of this invention will more fully appear from the following detaileddescriptiontaken in connecpasses through a slot in. a level-20 pivoted plunger1 6 and a partofth'e base 10 andtends .1328. Serial No. zeasao.

tion with the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of this invention, 3

and in which I r l B 1g. 1s a fragmentary transverse sectlonal YlSW'Oi an automatic screw machine embody mg the present invention; I

F 1g. 21s a vertical fragmentary sectional view thereof taken on the line 22 of'Fig. 1-

looking inthe rows; r y

F ig; 3 is'a horizontal fragmentary sectional view, thereof taken onthe'line 3"3 of'Fig xl direction indicated by therarlooking in the direction indicatedby the arrows, and 1 V i V Fig. 4 is a fragmentary transverse sectional vlew similartoFig. 1 of'another automatic" screw machine embodying theinvention'. j

Referring to the drawing in which like i reference characters "designate like parts throughout the severalyiews,and particularly to'Flg; 1 thereof,tl ie numeral 10 designates generally'the ,basebf an automatic screw machine supporting a tool-holding turret 11 having a shaft let-extending therefrom and normallyheld, with one ofia plurality of tool-holding apertures/l2, l8 and 15-15 its lowermost position where it is directly in line with tlrematerial feeding spindle (not shown), by means of a; locking plunger-[16,

positioned in aisl e'eve 17 attached to the frame 10, which plunger engagesbushings 19- -19 in '1 the edge of the turret 11. The end of the locking plunger 16 opposite the tu'rretfll on a fulcrum 21 and a pin 23 is mounted on the plunger 16*to engage the lever' 20. A

compression spring 24 is positioned between:

the en'd of the lever 20: opposite the locking 3 i to force the locking plunger 16 11pwardly into retll.

The turret"11jhas afgear 25 formedon the .90 the bushings 19 -519 in theedge ofthe ,tur-

for actuatingthe'fGeneva gear is mounted 0 11 32 isintermittently driven a source-of shaft' 32 adjacent the gear 29, which shaft power (not shown). An eccentric cam 33 19-3 7 also mounted on the shaft 32 so as to engage a stud 35 fixed to a bell crank lever 36 which is pivoted on the fulcrum 21 and which has a stud 39 formed thereon at theendopposite the stud 35. A trip lever 40 which is pivoted on a fulcrum 41 is provided with a headfportion 42 which engages a slot 43 cut in the locking plunger 16 and which'has a slot 44 cut therein to receive the stud 39. An adj ustable cam 45, "which engages a cam 47 on a revolving drum 48 driven by a shaft 50 connected-to a source of power (not shown.),.is attached to the other end of the trip lever 40 by means of a screw 49 and may beretained in engagement with a shoulder 46. as shown in solid lines in 1 by meansofa spring 51. The cam 45may also be rotated about the screw 49 into the position against the shoulder 46 shown by dotted lines, ifdesired, to permit the operation of the screw apparatus in the usual manner, and the spring 51 will also serve to retain the cam 45 in its rotated position.

A plate 52 (Fig. 2) having fixed thereto a positioning device designated generally by the numeral 54 is positioned on the face of the turret 11 by means of finger-s 53 and 55 which are inserted in tool-holding apertures 154-15 and which extend from the plate 52. One end of a spiral spring 59v is fixed in a slot 60 cut in a circular flange 61 extending 7 from the plate 52, and the other end of the spring 59 is attached to a shaft 63 about which the spring 59'is positioned and about which the plate 52 rotates when the turret 11 is rotate'd. A plate 69 encircles the shaft 62, which shaft has a nut 64 threaded on one end thereof and a. head 65 formed on the other end thereof, and the shaft 63 is prearm 71 formed thereon which engages a rod 72 fixed to the base 10 and W111 ch has threaded therein an adj usta-ble-stop member comprising a stop screw 73having a lock nut74 as soc-iated therewith, which screw 73contacts with a T-shaped plunger 75 slida-bly posi- 'tioned in a cylindrical bore 78 formed in a portion of thepositioning device 54 and normally urged to the left (F 3) by means of an expansion spring 79 mounted in the bore 78and retained therein by a; threaded I It is believed that the operation ofthe ap. paratus will be readily understood from the foregoing. detailed description and from the following description of its operation. As-

suming that as shown in Fig. 1' the toolholding aperture 12 is opposite the material feeding spindle (not shown), that is, at its lowermost position, the shaft 32 is rotated in aclockwise direction at predetermined intervals by gearing (not shown) causing the cam 33 to engage the stud 35, thus rocking the lever 36 about the fulcrum 21 and through the action of the stud 39 withdrawing the locking plunger 16 from the associated bushing 19. The driving member 31 then engages the Geneva gear 29, thereby causing the turret 11 to rotate one-sixth of a revolution in a clockwise direction. against the force of the spring 59, thus bringing the tool mounted in tool-holding aperture 13 to its lowermost position and opposite the material feeding spindle (not shown). The cam 47 on the drum 48 is positioned so that when the tool held in the tool-holding aperture 13 has completed its operation on the material, the cam 47 will engage, the cam 45 on the tripping lever 40, rocking the lever 40 about its fulcrum 41 and causing the lever 40 to withdraw the locking plunger 16 from the bushing 19. Since the driving member 31 is at this time out of engagement with the Geneva gear 29, the Geneva gear and associated gears are free to rotate and the turret 11 may be rotated in a counter-clockwise direction one-sixth of a revolution by the spring 59 against the force of which the turret 11 had been rotated. The turret is restrained from turning more than one-sixth of a revolution in a counter-clocl wise direction by the engagement of the screw 73 with the plunger 75. The turret 11 is partially positioned by the engagement of the screw 73 with the plunger 75 so that the cam 47 having passed the cam 45 the locking plunger 16 is caused to enter oneof'the'bushings 19 by the spring 24, whereupon the tool in tool-holding aperture 12 is again opposite the material feeding spindle. After the tool in tool-holding aperture 12 has completed its operation, the turret 11 will again be rotated in a clockwise direction by means of the Geneva drive member 31 and the above outlined operationsrwillbe repeated 7 In another embodiment of this invention, as illustrated byFig. 4, the lever 40 and parts associated therewith are replaced by a lever 82 pivoted at a point intermediate its ends on a fulcrum 41 and having at one end thereof a roller 83 which engages a cam 84 on the drum 48. At the other end of the lever 82 is pivoted a link 86 which connectsthe lever 82 to the lever 20, which at its other end normally engages a pin 231on the locking plunger 16, thus'tendin-g to force the locking plunger 16 into the bushings 19 on the edge of the turret l1. Upon the engagement of the roller 83 with the cam 84, the lever 20 engages a pin 87 on the locking plunger 16 to withdraw the plunger 16 from thebushing 19. The reversing mechanism on the'face of theturret 11 is. replaced by a coil spring 88 which hasone end fixedto a pin 90 mountedin one of the tool-holdin g apertures 15 and the other endfixed to the frame 10. 'lhe'positioning deviceis replaced-by an arm 91,:one end of l which is secured within a holein the shaft 14,

and the other end-of whi'chhas'a'pin 94' slidably-positioned'in a hole-formed near the end of arm 91. The pin 94 has a head 95 formed on one end thereof, a nut 96-is threaded on the other end thereof and the pin 94 is urged to the :left (as shown in Fig.4) by a'compression spring 97 positioned fthereabout which engages the head 95 a'ndthe armq9l so that the head 95 thereof will resiliently The operation .cf the second embodiment of I this invention is thesame as that of the first embodiment described hereinexcept as fol-. lows: The locking plunger 16 is Withdrawn from the bushing 19 by means of'the eccentric 33 and the turret rotated in aclockwise direction by the Geneva gear 29 and drive member 31 against the action of thespring 88 to move the tool-holding aperture 13 to the lowest position. The tool mounted in tool-holding; aperture spindle 13 having completed its operation on the material, the'cam 84 will engage the roller 83 and rock the lever 82' which in turn through the link 86 will rock the leverIQO, thus-causing the lever to engage pin 87 on looking plunger -16-and to Withdraw said plunger 16 from the bush ing 19. The locking plunger 16 having been- Withdrawn, the spring 88 will cause the turret to rotate in a counter-clockwise direction until the head 95 of the pin 94 engages the portion 98 of the base 10, whereupon the cam 84 having passed the roller 83, the locking plunger 16 will be caused to engage the bushing 19 and the tool in tool-holding aperture 12 will be in the lowermost position.

The member 99 inserted in the slot of the Geneva gear 29 acts as a safety device to prevent damage to the tools mounted on theturret in the event that the spring 88 is broken or in any manner disengaged so that it will not serve to reverse the movement'of the turret. This member 99 prevents the driving member 31from entering the slot on the Geneva gear and thereby prevents the Geneva 7 gear from indexingthe turret. This/safety element is not needed in the first embodiment of the invention since the finger w1ll en- 7 v gage the arm 71 in that embodiment of the ing vention and thereby prevent the Geneva'gear fromturning the turret. p i

The foregoing description covers a specific embodiment of the invention wherein an automatic'screw machine is provided with a turret having siXtool stations, but it isobvious' that the invention is applioable'to other types of tool holders and that it maybe ap plied to any tool'holderhaving three or more tool stations. Inlthedescription andclaims,

therefore, the termi multiple tool-holder? has beenjused todesignate tool holders having I to three or more tool stations 1. In amaterial workingapparatus, fa ro tatablemultiple tool holder, means for rotatingthe tool holder in one directiontobring one of the tools into operating position,-

means ,for rotating the tool holder in the opposite direction to bring another of the tools into operating pos1t1on,"means for locking the tool holde rtagainst rotation in'eitheriof the above mentioned positions, and means for automatically releasing thelockingmeans at" predetermined intervals to permit the means for rotating the'tool holder to function;

2. In a material working apparatus,a"rotatable tool holder, a spring, means for rotatmg the tool holder against the action of the springto bring a tool into operating position,

means for releasing the.toolholderto'permit the springlto. rotate the tool holder in the op-:--

posite direction to bring'another tool into operatingrpos'ition, meansv for automatically locking the tool holderin either of'the above i mentioned positions, andlmeans for; automatically releasing the lockin'gmeans at 'pre- I a determined intervals to permit the means for the spring .to'funotion. 7

rotating the tool holder against the aetion tof I 3. In a:mater1alworking apparatusiairm:

tatable tool holder,- 'means for rotating the I tool holder inon'edirectionto bring a tool into operating-position, a spring actuated device mounted on the tool holder'for rotatingthe 1 'tool holder in the oppositedirection to bring another tool into operating position, means 4 for approximately positioning the tool holder after its rotation bythe' spring actuatedv device, meansfor accuratelypositioningand looking the'tool holder inieither' of the above mentioned positions, and 1 means for automatically releasing the locking means at predetermined' ntervals to permit tlie meansfor rotating :theytool holder to function; 7

t In a material working apparatus, a'piv-' otally. movablelmultiple toolholder, a tension spring, means'for pivotally moving the tool holder in one directioniagainst the tensioniof the spring to bring a tool into operating position, and means for releasing'the tool holder to permit the spring to pivotally move the toolholderin the opposite direction and thereby bring another tool intooperatingp'ositionl r .5; In aT-matenal working appajratus',a:-ro-

the tool holderwith. tool in operating positatablegtool holder, aspringtendingto hold V tion,vfmeans forjrotating, the. tool holder in e e tio o e; r qbr ng. .1

r. 601 to -p atinsp si means for a a iellt 'la kine. ev too h l e e ther otthe above. mentioned positions,

plate affixed to the shaft, a plate rotatable about the shaft, an arm extending from the the initial movement of the holder effective thereafter for bringing the holder to present a different tool. 1

In Witness whereof, Ihereunto subscribe my name this 31st day of March A.D., 1928.

r CARL IVAR WHEN.

first mentioned plate which engages a part of a the framework, and a spiral spring-positioned between the plates and about the shaft, one end of which is attached to the shaft and the other 'end of which is attached to the plate rotatable about the shaft, means for positioning the tool holder after its movementby the second mentioned means for moving the tool holder, means for looking I the tool holder in either of the above mentioned positions, and means for automatically releasing the locking means at predetermined intervals to permit the two first mentioned means to function. I

7. In a material working apparatus,a tool holder, means for imparting "a relative movement between the material to be worked upon and the tool holder to brin'g'them into operating position, means for -causing a relative movement between the material to be worked 7 upon and the tool holder in the reverse direction to change the operating position, means for preventing the relative movement, and means for automatically releasing the'lockin g means at predetermined intervals. I

8. In combination with an automatic screw n'iachine having a tool holder capable of being moved to a plurality of tooling positions, of an attachmentfor rendering only two'of said positions effective, including means for moving the tool holder to bring at'ool into an operatingposition, means for preventing the further movement of said tool holder,'means for rendering the preventing means ineffective at'predetermined intervals, and means for thereafter moving said tool holder to bring afidiifere'nt tool into an operating position.

V 9. Incombination with an automatic'screw machine having a tool holder capable of being moved to a plurality of tooling positions, of an attachmentfor rendering only two of said positions effective, including means for positively moving the tool holder to move the tool into an operating positiommeans for preventing theifu'rthe'r movement of said tool older, means for rendering" the preventing means'inefiectivea't predetermined intervals, andfa spring in which energy is stored upon 

